Probable cause found for assault charge against Southbridge doctor accused of hitting 6-year-old

Wednesday

Nov 20, 2013 at 6:00 AMNov 20, 2013 at 10:51 AM

By Brian Lee, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

DUDLEY — Dr. Thomas E. O'Leary of the Southbridge School Committee is scheduled to be arraigned Jan. 9 on a charge that he slapped a 6-year-old patient's face during an Oct. 28 appointment at Harrington Physician Services.

At the request of Southbridge police, First Assistant Clerk Magistrate William F. George found probable cause for the charge Tuesday during a closed-door hearing in Dudley District Court. The assault and battery case will be presented to a judge.

Dr. O'Leary was terminated from his job as a pediatrician with Harrington Physician Services on Nov. 1 as a result of the alleged incident, a Harrington spokesman said.

According to a police report by Southbridge police Detective Robert M. Salisbury, Dr. O'Leary said the boy became agitated with his father while in the examination room of the Southbridge facility.

Dr. O'Leary, who said the boy was a bit uncooperative and antsy, was at his computer documenting information about the boy, the report said.

The doctor said the boy removed his shoe and raised it in a throwing motion toward his father, the report said.

The physician said he got up and stood between the boy and his father.

Dr. O'Leary said he grabbed the shoe from the boy's hand and dropped it to the floor.

Dr. O'Leary alleged that the boy kicked him in the groin.

The doctor said his momentum caused him to bend slightly forward in reaction to the kick, at which time his hand came forward and he slapped the boy on the cheek with his open hand, the report said.

The father said his son began to cry; he had a red mark on his face, the report said.

The doctor and the father and his two sons were placed in separate rooms for a time as the facility's public safety unit responded. The office manager sent Dr. O'Leary home and took pictures of the boy's face, the report said.

The boy, who has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and behavioral problems, had been seeing Dr. O'Leary about three years. The father said he hadn't given his son his medication that morning — in an effort to show the pediatrician the boy's behavior.

Dr. O'Leary's lawyer, Karen A. Michalson, told a reporter there's a lot of evidence in the case that is not yet publicly available.

"When all of the facts come out I think it will be very clear what happened. I'm very confident that Dr. O'Leary is going to be exonerated," she said, adding that probable cause is a low standard of evidence.

The father, of Worcester, said he was happy with the decision.

The father said neither he nor Dr. O'Leary spoke during the hearing.

During an interview earlier this month, Dr. O'Leary said he intended to resign from the school board because he didn't want to bring negative attention to the committee.

He did not return a phone message after the hearing.

Julie Pena of the Southbridge town clerk's office said Tuesday afternoon that Dr. O'Leary had not submitted a resignation letter to that office.

Asked about the status of Dr. O'Leary's medical license to practice, Ms. Michalson said, "I don't believe" he had lost the license. She declined to comment further.